Axially slidable apertured closure cap having means for limiting opening movement of the cap



NOV. 13, 1951 B w TE AXIALLY SLIDABLE APERTURED CLOSURE CAP HAVING MEANS FOR LIMITING OPENING MOVEMENT OF THE CAP Filed July 4, 1945 INVENTOR .RALPH WAI'TE Patented Nov. 13, 1951 AXIALLY SLIDABLE APERTURED CLOSURE CAP HAVING MEANS FOR LIMITING OPEN- ING MOVEMENT OF THE GAP Ralph B. Waite, Springville, N. Y. i :Applicatio'n July 4, 1945, Serial No. 603,182

4 Claims. (01. 222 -522') V 1 p v This invention relates in general to improvements in containers and dispensing devices therefor of the type disclosed in U. S." Patent No. 2,334,851, issued November 23, 1943, and has particular reference to dispensers and closures for receptacles containing tooth cream, shaving cream, cosmetics, and the like.

One of the principal objects of the invention is to provide a container-Which shall be initially hermetically sealed, and improved means for opening said container and controlling the dispensing of the contents thereof. I Another object'has been to provide a dispenser and closure for containers which shall effectively seal the contents of the'container when once it has been opened for dispensing.

Moreover, it has been a specific object of the invention to provide an improved stop or detent for the closure member.

The above objects and advantages, as well as others which will be apparent to those skilled in the art, have been accomplished by the device shown in the accompanying drawings, of which:

Fig. l is a fragmentary enlarged view taken through a portion of the dispensing tube of the collapsible type, showing the initial hermetic seal and the dispenser and closure member in' operative position;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the dispenser and closure member in. its non-dispensing position, to which position it has been moved after having broken the seal of the container;

Fig. 3 is aside elevation of the dispensing control member; 7

Fig. 4 is a sectional view thereof taken on line IV-IV of Fig. 3; ,V

Fig. 5 is a plan view of the member;

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary side elevation of another form of the invention; and

Fig. '7 is a sectional view thereof taken online VII-VII of Fig. 6.

The invention is applicable to containers having rigid walls such as receptacles for tooth powder and the like, or to collapsible tubes containing pastes of various kinds. For purposes of illustration, the invention is shown applied to the latter type of container.

.The container has the usual body part I provided with an upstanding reduced cylindrical neck H formed with a bore l2. An integral wall or membrane l3 located near the inner end of the neck H serves to closethe neck and to hermetically seal the contents of the tube until such time as its contents are to be dispensed. The outer end M of the bore is arranged for sealing contact of the-dispensing control member 15 when in its closed position, as will hereinafterbe more fully described.

The dispensing control member l comprises a cylindrical body It having a central bore 20,

closed at its upper end by means of the head M of the member. This head is preferably rectangular in shape so as to enable the operator to securely grasp the'same with his fingers, and it is preferably formed at each corner with a laterally extending tab 22 to increase the base dimensions upon which the tube may be stood in longitudinally vertical position. A raised lip 23 is formedalong opposite end edges of the head to provide spaced ridges for contact with a horizontal supporting surface for improving the support of the tube when rested in vertical position. 7

The body [B of the closure member is preferably cylindrical and comprises a tapered inner portion IT, a substantially straight-Walled portion l8 for sliding engagement with the bore l2 of the neck, and a gradually curved flaring portion l9 for. engagement with the end Id of the neck for tightly sealing the receptacle. The end of the inner portion ll is provided with a beveled surface 25 having a point 26 at its lower edge. The point and beveled surface provide means for cutting the wall or membrane l3 when the member is forced inwardly into the tube. Owing to the taper shape of the inner portion I! of the body, the cutting edge ,of the beveled surface 25 will sever. the membrane l3 at a point slightly removed from theneok and thereby form a rolled flange 35 (see Fig. 2). The contents of the receptacle may then be forced up into the central bore 20 of the member and out through a dispensing opening 30 formed through the wall of the membernear the head thereof. The head is providedwith a lug 3! extending outwardlyfrom the side edge and preferably in alignment with the-dispensing opening whereby to indicate to the user by his sense of touch the position of such opening.

Obviously, it is desirable to prevent the dispensing control member from becoming detached from the neck, and in order to accomplish this, suitable detent means are provided at the inner end of the closure member. In the present invention, detents 32 and 33 are provided by wall sections 38 and 39 formed by a slot 31 extending longitudinally a limited distance outwardly from the point 26 of the tapered portion of the body. The upper end of the slot 3'! is terminated at a lateral slot 34 formed in the body which severs the wall sections thus making them flexible and resilient. The forward portions of these wall sections at their upper edges extend outwardly beyond the contour of the portion l8 of the body, thereby forming the detents 32 and 33 for engagement with the rolled flange 35 formed at the lower end of the neck I l of the container. The slot is of such width that when the closure is insertedinto theneck,-'the wall sections will substantially touch so as to form an unbroken will spring outwardly so that on reverse axialmovement they will engage the flange and thereby prevent the member from becoming detached from the container. The dispenser and closure of this invention may be made from plastic material, preferably of the thermoplastic type.

From the foregoing, it will be clear that when the material of the tube or container is to be dispensed, the closure will be drawn from the neck until the detents 32 and 33 engage the flange 35 at which time the dispensing opening 30 will be clear of the upper edge of the neck I I and in such position that material may easily pass therethrough. When the desired amount of material has been dispensed, the member is pushed inwardly until the flaring portion I9 thereof engages the upper end l4 of the neck and slightly expands the latter to tightly seal the container, the opening 30 being snugly cov ered by the neck when in this position.

In the form of invention shown in Figs. 6 and '7, the detents 36 and 40 are formed by thickened wall sections 4| and 42 which extend beyond the straight sided portion 43 of the body, as indicated in Fig. '7 by the dot and dash line 44, and which, like the other form of the invention, are formed in the tapered portion 45 of the body of the dispensing member, whereby insertion of the member within a receptacle will be facilitated. The wall sections are severed by a longitudinal slot 46 which terminates at an inclined lateral slot 50. By forming the detents in this form of the invention by the use of thickened wall sections the bore of the body remains substantially constant throughout the length thereof, thereby facilitating the manufacture of the device.

Obviously, some modifications of the details herein shown and described may be made without departing from the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A dispenser and closure member for a dispensing receptacle having a neck, said dispenser and closure member comprising a cylindrical body slidably engaging said neck, said body having its inner end disposed within said receptacle and below said neck, said body being slotted longitudinally at the inner end thereof and crossslotted intermediately of the ends thereof to provide a T shaped slotted formation defining a pair of wing-like body wall portions at opposite sides of said longitudinal slot, said wing-like formations extending outwardly solely adjacent the longitudinal slot in said body and elastically set to normally protrude radially beyond the general profile line of said body, whereby said winglike formations are provided in the region of said cross slot to present abutment ledges extending transversely of the longitudinal axis of said body and normally disposed radially beyond the general profile of said body.

2. A dispenser and closure member for a dispensing receptacle having a neck, said dispenser and closure member comprising a cylindrical ing its inner end disposed within said receptacle and below said neck, said body being slotted longitudinally at the inner end thereof and crossslotted intermediately of the ends thereof to provide a T shaped slotted formation defining a pair of wing-like body wall portions at opposite sides of said longitudinal slot, said wing-like formations being formed of tapering thickness wall material whereby the inner end of said member freely slipfits into the bore of said neck while said wing-like formations protrude radially outwardly solely adjacent the longitudinal slot in said body in the region of said cross slotting to present abutment ledges extending transversely of the longitudinal axis of said body and disposed radially outwardly beyond the general profile line of said body.

3. In combination, a dispenser having a perforated wall providing a dispensing port, a closure for said dispensing port comprising a tubular member closed at one end and having a dispensing opening through a wall portion thereof in open communication with the interior, said tubular member being slit at its inner end longitudinally thereof and intermediately of its ends transversely thereof in a plane inclined downwardly and rearwardly to provide a pair of flexible wall portions extending radially outwardly solely adjacent the longitudinal slit in said member to provide upwardly pitched ledge devices for engaging behind said dispenser port to lock said closure against disassembly from the dispenser.

4. A dispensing device comprising a receptacle having a neck provided with a cylindrical bore therethrough, and a closure member comprising a body cylindrical throughout the greater portion of its length and of a length substantially greater than the length of said neck, said body being of a diameter corresponding to the diameter of the opening through said neck to have a sliding bearing fit therein to prevent contents of the container from passing around said body in any longitudinal position thereof in said neck, the upper end of said body being flared to increase in diameter upwardly to snugly engage in the opening in said neck when said body is pushed downwardly, said body having the lower end thereof slotted to provide such end of said body with radial resilience and said body having portions solely adjacent the slotted portion thereof extending outwardly to form a shoulder engageable with the lower portion of said neck to limit upward movement of said body to a dispensing position and said body having a lateral discharge port arranged wholly above said neck when said body is in said dispensing position, said body between said discharge port and the slotted portion thereof being imperforate.

RALPH B. WAITE.

REFERENCES CITED i The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

,UNITED STATES PATENTS 

